


Compatible

by sebastiel



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Action & Romance, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Pacific Rim, Angst, Bullying, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Minor Jessica Moore/Sam Winchester
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-06
Updated: 2015-02-19
Packaged: 2018-02-12 00:06:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,932
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2088099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sebastiel/pseuds/sebastiel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Winchester brothers were one of the most highly regarded Jaeger pilot pairs in the world, the immense strength of their bond making them practically unstoppable in battle. However, their last encounter with a category four Kaiju had gone awry, leaving Sam with a badly broken arm and Dean without a co-pilot.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Basically half way through watching Pacific Rim for the first time I decided this needed to exist.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Castiel get paired up while Sam heals, and Dean is definitely not happy about it...initially.

“Four points to zero.”

A loud sigh passed Dean’s lips as he pushed off of his opponent, the scrawny boy scrambling away from him and fleeing into the line of other men waiting to see if they were drift compatible with the esteemed pilot. Dean was growing sick of this, having to take down opponent after opponent while making no progress towards finding a worthy co-pilot. An hour had painstakingly slipped by, and not only was Dean growing frustrated, he was growing bored.

“Come on, Marshal Harvelle. Is all of this _really_ necessary?” Dean asked with a groan as he turned to the woman watching the matches with arms tightly crossed and a disapproving frown pulling at her lips. Dean was pretty sure she was becoming just as frustrated and bored as he was. “Sammy should be good as new soon enough, why waste time trying to pair me up with one of these idiots?”

The older woman’s eyes narrowed as she squared her shoulders. “The doctors say your brother’s injury will take months to heal, and, as much as I hate to admit it, you’re too damn valuable to be on leave for that long. You will do as I say and you will find a new co-pilot for the time being. I’ll hear nothing more about it. Is that clear, Winchester?”

“Crystal,” Dean grumbled as he turned back to the line of candidates.

The Winchester brothers were one of the most highly regarded Jaeger pilot pairs in the world, the immense strength of their bond making them practically unstoppable in battle. However, their last encounter with a category four Kaiju had gone awry, leaving Sam with a badly broken arm and Dean without a co-pilot. Dean had despised the idea of having to be paired with someone new, knowing that the bond he had with Sam could never be recreated. He especially despised the aspect of having someone besides his brother linked to his thoughts and memories. The last thing he needed was some stranger seeing the shit he had been through.

“Alright, who’s next, Jo?” the marshal asked as she turned to the young blonde beside her.

“Um…” Jo squinted at her clipboard. “Castiel Novak. He’s new, but his simulator score is outstanding. 51 drops and 51 kills.”

Dean rolled his eyes with a scoff. ‘ _I could get that score in my sleep_ ’ he thought with a chuckle, but his chuckle turned into a small choke as his next opponent stepped forward.

The man was, for lack of a better word, _gorgeous,_ with intense shockingly bright blue eyes and messy jet black hair that stuck out in a way that made it look like he had just rolled out of bed. He was lean, yet Dean could see strong muscles rolling under his slightly tanned skin as he moved into a fighting stance. The ranger took a moment to rake his olive eyes up and down his opponent’s body, a small smirk on his lips as he decided it wouldn’t be _so_ bad to have to team up with _that_.

“Alright, buddy. Let’s see what you can do.” Dean’s smirk grew as he moved into a fighting stance as well. “Don’t think I’m gonna go easy on you just because you’re a rook-“ His words were cut short and he blinked in surprise as suddenly there was a staff two inches from his nose.

“0-1.” Dean blinked in surprise once more at how _gravelly_ the man’s voice was, but that moment of hesitance was enough for Castiel to step back and whirl around with impressive speed to place his staff against Dean’s neck. “0-2.”

Dean growled before stepping back and springing into action, swinging for the man’s head. Castiel blocked the strike with ease, his expression stony as he blocked every blow Dean dealt without even a flinch. The Winchester’s brow knit in concentration as he began using his more complex moves, a grin breaking out over his face as he managed to position his staff right between Castiel’s eyes. “1-2”

Castiel’s expression remained static as he stepped back and began dealing rapid blows at the taller man. Dean struggled to block him, for it seemed that Castiel’s fighting style focused more on agility while Dean’s focused more on strength, but he managed to fight him off long enough to fling Castiel over his shoulder with a loud grunt and swing for his head. “2-2”

The crowd began buzzing with excitement as Dean stepped back to catch his breath and Castiel pushed himself off of the ground. While Dean could begin to feel adrenaline pumping through his veins and beads of sweat trickling down his neck, Castiel remained seemingly unfazed, his calm demeanor never wavering as he went back into his fighting stance. Dean felt a wave of irritation wash over him as he began to attack with vigor to illicit some sort of reaction from the other man. His attempts were rewarded as he managed to hit Castiel in the side, the victorious smirk on his face earning a small snarl from the other man. “3-2.”

Castiel began to attack with a new fury, his blue eyes wide and intense as he raged like a storm. Dean barely managed to deflect the blows, and he cursed loudly in frustration as he felt Castiel’s staff whack at his side. “3-3.”

The air around them felt electric as the battle grew in intensity, both men giving it their all as their fighting became a synchronized dance of lunging and dodging. Dean’s frustration finally hit its peak and he threw Castiel down with an enraged cry, staff forgotten as he pinned the man down with fire in his eyes.

“Enough!” Marshal Harvelle ordered. Dean shoved himself off of Castiel with a growl as the crowd applauded. He turned to the woman whose lips were curled up into an amused smile. “I think we’ve seen all we need to see. Congratulations, Winchester, you’ve found yourself a co-pilot.”

Dean’s eyes widened in horror. “But-“

 

“You two shall report to the Shatterdome in two hours. You’re dismissed.”

* * *

 

“I’m tellin’ ya, Sammy, the guy is a _grade A_ asshole,” Dean groaned as he flopped back onto his mattress. After taking a good hour in the gym to punch out his frustrations, Dean had immediately gone to fill Sam in on his encounter with the rookie pilot, Sam only giving the occasional nod of understanding as he listened to Dean’s rant and leaned back against the headboard of his own bed which lay parallel to Dean’s. “You shoulda _seen_ this dickbag fighting. It was like he was too _good_ for it or something, like I wasn’t worth his time and he was bored.”

“He probably was.” Sam laughed as Dean turned to glare at him. “What? You haven’t had to fight anyone like that since we got paired together _years_ ago, Dean. You’re probably rusty.”

Dean rolled his eyes with a scoff. “I’m not _rusty_ , I was kickin’ serious ass in there. The guy’s just a complete douchebag. I dunno how the hell they expect me to let _that guy_ into my head-“ he glanced up at the clock on his bedside table “-fifteen minutes from now.”

Sam frowned as he ran his free hand through his long hair. “You’re going to have to.”

“What?”

Sam sighed and shook his head. “Listen, Dean. Like it or not, you need a new co-pilot while I’m recovering. You and Castiel are drift compatible. You _need_ him, which means you’re going to have to learn to trust him or you two will never be able to fight. I know you, Dean, you love being a pilot, and staying holed up in here for the next few months is going to drive you insane. You’re just going to have to bite the bullet for a while and deal with him until I get better.”

Dean’s mouth parted as he prepared to fire back an argument of why he definitely did _not_ need someone like _that_ as a co-pilot, but no such argument came to mind. He turned and glared at the ceiling for a moment before roughly scrubbing his hands over his face. He hated how much of a smartass his little brother could be sometimes. With a loud groan, he pushed himself off of his bed and trudged over to the door.

Sam’s brow furrowed as his eyes followed his brother. “Where are you going?”

Dean sighed, his hand on the doorway. “To go make peace with a dickbag so we don’t end getting torn apart by a category one Kaiju.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also on [Tumblr](http://archangcl.tumblr.com/post/92863231204/)


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean's first trial run with Castiel doesn't exactly go according to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I completely forgot to upload this when I wrote it six months ago whoops sorry everyone

“Second pilot on board.”

Dean took a deep breath as Castiel’s heavy footsteps echoed through the room. He could do this. He just had to put on a game face and everything would run smoothly. He squared his shoulders before turning to his co-pilot. “Listen, Castiel. Before we do this, I gotta say something.”

Dean’s composure almost broke as suddenly those intense blue eyes were locked onto his, but he managed to keep his resolve. “I know you and I had a rocky start earlier, but we gotta put that behind us now. Drifting is based on trust, and if we don’t trust each other we won’t be able to gank even a level one Kaiju. So let’s just…try to make this work, deal?”

Dean smiled at himself, impressed with his own maturity towards the situation, but his smile fell as Castiel simply shrugged and turned away. ‘ _Well fuck you too, buddy,’_ Dean thought with a scowl as he flipped a few switches and the Jaeger’s system began to count down.

“I know you haven’t done this before so just remember, don’t try hanging onto any of the memories. As much as you’re gonna want to, don’t chase the rabbit,” Dean warned, his eyes flickering over to his companion who only nodded as he stared stiffly ahead. “Just let the memories flow and this should all be sunshine and rainbows. Stay in the drift, ignore anything else.”

Dean watched Castiel nod again before he let his eyes slip closed and breathed deeply through his nose, his body relaxing as the system finished counting down and memories began zipping past his vision. He felt panic as he watched his young self sprint from his burning home, his baby brother in his arms but their parents still inside. He felt joy as he watched his teenage self and Sam light up fireworks on the fourth of July, their grinning faces bathing in the flashing colors. He felt loneliness as he watched a young Castiel sit alone at the edge of the playground, a thick book in his hand as the other children ran around laughing. He felt terror as he watched a teenage Castiel cower behind a dumpster in an alleyway, curled up on the concrete as he prayed that his attackers wouldn’t find him. That memory seemed to linger longer than the others, but then it was gone and the two men gasped as they were wrenched back into reality.

Dean felt a renewed sense of peace wash over him and replace the onslaught of emotions brought on by the drift. The two men moved in perfect synchronization as the system announced that calibration was complete, but just as Dean turned to congratulate Castiel his head suddenly jerked back.

Dean cried out as the voice of their technician, Kevin, came over the intercom. “Castiel is out of alignment, I repeat, Castiel is out of alignment! Dean, he’s chasing the rabbit!”

Dean’s head whipped around to Castiel who stood stock still, his eyes wide and lips slightly parted. “God dammit, Castiel. You son of a bitch, stay with me!” Castiel remained unresponsive, his eyes unblinking as he delved deeper into the memory. “Castiel! _Castiel!_ ”

Dean’s head swam and his vision shifted as he was dragged into Castiel’s subconscious. He blinked as he took in his new surroundings, the alleyway from before. His eyes dropped down to Castiel who sat trembling on the cold ground, his lanky arms wrapped around his scraped knees and his eyes wide and brimming with fear. Dean could feel everything this teenage version of Castiel felt, and the ice cold terror that was clenching in his chest was almost too much to bear.

“Castiel…” His voice was soft as he stepped towards the boy. “Cas, it’s alright. This isn’t real, you’re safe. This is just a memory. You’re okay.”

“There you are, dear brother!” Both of their heads snapped towards the end of the alley, a shiver running down both of their spines as three figures approached.

Castiel’s eyes somehow widened even more as he trembled harder. “Naomi, please, have mercy,” he whimpered, but his pleas were met with a harsh shrill laugh.

Dean’s eyes narrowed as the girl approached, two boys who were easily twice Castiel’s size flanking on her sides. “You’re a sinner, little brother, and sinners must be punished.” There was a sinister glint in her eye as a twisted smile pulled at her lips.

“Please, sister, I have done nothing wrong. Please just let me go.” Tears were threatening to spill over as a broken sob wracked through Castiel’s body, the terror he felt steadily consuming both him and Dean.

Dean swallowed in an attempt to push back the fear as he stepped closer to Castiel and helplessly reached a hand towards him. “Cas, come on, come back to me, buddy. None of this is real, you’re safe. I promise you _you’re safe_. Just come back to me.”

Naomi threw her head back as she cackled, the sound reverberating off of the walls of the alley. “Done nothing wrong? You dared to bring your _filth_ into this family. You’ve dishonored the Novak name. You’re going to burn in Hell and you’re trying to drag the rest of us with you. Yet you claim you’ve done nothing wrong?”

Tears were now flowing down Castiel’s cheeks as he held himself tighter and shook his head. “No, no it’s not like that, I promise you it’s not like that! Please have mercy, sister. I beg of you!” His breathing was coming out in short gasps as panic began coursing through his veins, Dean’s knees almost buckling from the force of it. His mind raced to think of a way to bring Castiel back to reality, but the hurricane of emotions raging inside both him and Castiel made any sort of thought practically impossible.

Naomi scoffed with a shake of her head as she turned to boys beside her. “Zachariah, Uriel, show our sinner of a brother the consequences of his actions.”

“No!” Dean screamed, quickly forgetting that the others couldn’t hear him. Icy terror and fiery panic collided and raged in his chest as he stepped forward as if to intervene, wishing he could do something _anything_ to stop this from happening.

Castiel began to sob and scream as one of the boys dragged him into the middle of the alley by his ankle, the other quieting him by swiftly kicking him in the stomach. Naomi stood by with her arms folded over her chest and a smug smirk on her face as the boys began to savagely kick and punch the smaller boy.

Dean clenched his fists as white hot rage washed over him, but even stronger than the rage was the overwhelming feeling of uselessness he felt as he fought the urge to jump in and drag the two boys off, knowing that any attempts to physically save Castiel would be futile and all he could do was call out to him. He began to helplessly scream Castiel’s name, but his screams were drowned out by Castiel’s own.

“Father! Father, please! Help me! Make it stop, please!” the boy sobbed as he squeezed his eyes shut and curled into himself, looking tiny and absolutely pathetic. Dean felt his heart shattering, the voice in his head chanting _save him save him save him_ growing in volume.

Naomi tossed her head back and laughed loudly. “Father is gone! He couldn’t stand to live with an abomination such as you. He’s gone!”

Dean’s voice was becoming more and more hoarse and his throat felt like it was on fire, but he continued to scream until the attack finally dwindled down and Castiel’s screams were reduced to pitiful whimpers. One of the boys spat on Castiel with a sneer before the trio left the alley and their bloody and bruised brother behind.

Dean’s head swam and his vision shifted again as he was brought back into the present.

“Hey Dean, sorry about that. You guys were too far gone and I had to pull the plug to bring you back,” Kevin said over the intercom, but Dean ignored him as he immediately ripped off his helmet and rushed to Castiel’s side just as the man collapsed.

“Hey, hey, easy there. Don’t worry, I got you,” he murmured as he slowly knelt down and pulled Castiel against his chest. He quickly removed Castiel’s helmet and wrapped his arms firmly around him. Castiel remained unresponsive as he stared into the distance with wide fearful eyes, his body trembling forcefully and his breathing coming out ragged and shallow. “Cas? Cas. Hey, shhh, it’s okay, I’m here.” Dean ran his fingers through Castiel’s soft unruly hair as he gently rocked him, sighing in relief as the man’s trembling began to subside. “I’m right here, Cas. You’re safe now. You’re okay. No one is going to hurt you. It’s over now, you’re right here with me, you’re safe. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

Castiel’s eyes fluttered shut and he took in a few slow deep breaths before his eyes snapped back open and flickered up to Dean, their normal intensity back in place. Dean smiled softly at him as he mentally noted how it was almost like he was drowning in the blue of Castiel’s eyes by being this close.

They stayed like that for a moment, just staring at one another, but the spell was broken as Castiel suddenly shoved away from Dean and sprinted towards the door. Dean blinked in surprise before taking off after him. “Cas? Cas!”

 

* * *

 

After about twenty minutes of searching, Dean had finally found Castiel sitting across from an unfinished Jaeger, his arms wrapped around his knees as he stared up at the construction with an unreadable expression. “Hey, mind if I join you?” Dean asked as he cautiously approached. He worried that the sight of him would cause Castiel to flee as it had earlier, but Castiel’s gaze never left the Jaeger as he shrugged wordlessly in response.

Dean let out a breath he hadn’t known he had been holding as he sat beside the other man and leaned back onto his palms. They sat in silence for a few moments, Castiel’s eyes fixed onto the workers and Dean’s eyes fixed onto Castiel. His eyes flickered over his co-pilot’s features, from his long neck to his strong stubbled jaw to his dark sweeping lashes to his perpetually messy hair. The sparks from the construction were reflecting in Castiel’s eyes, the golden flashes mixing with the deep blue and painting an image of the night sky. Dean couldn’t help but think Castiel looked more gorgeous than ever, but he shoved that thought aside as he cleared his throat awkwardly and tore his gaze from the other man, a light blush creeping onto his cheeks.

“I failed.” Dean’s eyes snapped over Castiel, but the man still hadn’t moved, his expression remaining unchanged. Thinking perhaps he had imagined Castiel’s voice, Dean began to turn away, but he froze when Castiel spoke again. “All I had to do was block out the memories. It was such a simple task, and yet I failed miserably.” The self-loathing in Castiel’s tone was heavy and acidic as he glared up at the Jaeger, his arms tightening around his knees as his words lingered in the air between the two of them.

Dean frowned as he a sat up and placed a comforting hand on Castiel’s shoulder, surprised when the other didn’t immediately shrug him off. “Hey, no, don’t beat yourself up about what happened back there, man. The first time is rough for everybody. It just takes some getting used to. We’ll get it next time for sure.” Dean offered a reassuring smile, but his smile faltered as Castiel’s eyes dropped down to his shoes and his shoulders slumped.

Dean chewed on his bottom lip as he tried to think of what to say. He was never one for giving words of comfort; that was Sam’s role, not his.  “Hey, listen, in your defense, what happened to you was definitely traumatic enough to make it hard to just ignore it.”

Dean immediately regretted his choice of words as Castiel’s eyes suddenly latched onto his, his brow furrowed and the look in his eyes so intense Dean felt as if he were staring straight into his soul. He licked his lips nervously as he let his hand drop. “I just mean, uh...I felt what you felt, Cas, and I can tell you I have never been so fucking terrified in my life. What happened to you was…“

He shook his head as he turned away and his eyes flickered to the ground. “You didn’t deserve that, Cas. No one deserves shit like that, especially not you. To have your own _family_ do that to you, your older siblings who are supposed to _protect_ you-” He felt his hands ball up into fists as his jaw clenched, the sounds of teenage Castiel’s screams still echoing in his head as his older sister stood by laughing. “I swear I just-”

Dean froze as he suddenly felt a warm hand on his shoulder, his eyes snapping up to Castiel who was watching him with a soft look in his eyes and a miniscule hint of a smile on his lips. “Thank you, Dean.” Dean cursed the way he could feel a blush spreading across his cheeks at the sound of his name on Castiel’s lips. He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and gave a small nod before pushing himself off of the ground.

He dusted off his pants as a thought occurred to him and he glanced back to Castiel. “Oh, and just for the record, I don’t give two shits if you’re gay.” Castiel looked up at him with what could only be described a deer in the headlights expression and Dean grinned. “Don’t look at me like that. I was in your _head_ , Cas. Don’t think you can hide something like your sexuality from me. You were in my head too, ya know. You should know by now that I’m not exactly straight either.”

A light blush splashed across Castiel’s cheeks as he ducked his head. “I didn’t want to…make any assumptions,” he murmured.

Dean laughed as he shook his head, mentally noting that a flustered Castiel was an adorable Castiel. “Cas, if I’m making out with a girl in one memory and then making out with a guy in the next, it’s safe to assume that I don’t just swing for one team.”

Castiel’s blush darkened and Dean laughed again. “Alright, good chat. I’ll see you around, Cas,” he said with a wink as he turned to walk away, but he stopped as he felt Castiel’s fingers grasp his pant leg.

He looked down to find the other man’s brow furrowed. “Dean, wait.”

Dean tried to ignore the way his heart skipped a beat at hearing that voice say his name again. “Yeah?”

Castiel tilted his head in a way extremely similar to a confused puppy, and Dean mentally noted that he looked even _more_ adorable like that. “Why do you call me that?”

Dean quirked his brow. “Call you what?”

“Cas. My name is Castiel, but you call me Cas. You did it earlier as well, back in the trial run. Why?”

Dean thought for a moment before shrugging with a small smile. “Castiel is a mouthful.”

For some reason his response earned a genuine smile from Castiel, and it was like Dean was staring directly at the sun as the man’s eyes crinkled and dimples formed in his cheeks.

Dean cleared his throat as his heart fluttered. “Okay, well, I’ll, uh, I’ll see you around,” he said with a small awkward salute as he fled before he could find a way to embarrass himself further.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also on [Tumblr](http://archangcl.tumblr.com/post/92964477414/)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything with Dean and Castiel had been going great, more than great if you ask Dean, until suddenly it wasn't...at all.

“Hey Cas, if you wanna, oh, I don’t know, get your head out of your  _ass_  for a minute and work with me right now, that’d be pretty freakin’ awesome,” Dean shouted as their Jaeger lurched violently from another blow.

Castiel’s eyes remained focused on the Kaiju as if Dean hadn’t spoken at all as he suddenly thrust his arm forward, nearly giving Dean whiplash as the Jaeger threw a poorly aimed punch. Dean could have sworn he could actually hear the Kaiju laughing at them as it dove out of the way with ease.

“Dammit, Cas! What the hell is wrong with you, man?” Dean could feel the familiar feelings of anger, confusion, and hurt settling in his chest as Castiel continued to ignore him and threw another punch.

Dean couldn’t understand what had gone wrong. When they had first started fighting together, it didn’t take long to see that with their duo the term ‘drift compatible’ didn’t seem to fit the bill. In Dean’s opinion, they weren’t just ‘compatible’, it was almost like they were co-pilot  _soulmates._  Dean and Castiel had quickly formed a bond so profound that they had been an unstoppable force in battle, even more so than Dean and Sam had been. This surprised Dean more than anything. The only person Dean had ever felt he could trust was Sam, but for some reason handing over his complete trust to Castiel was as natural to Dean as breathing. He had no doubt that Castiel would have his back, or that he would have Castiel’s, and that was all there was to it.

But as time went on, Dean began to wonder if perhaps there was  _more_  to it. As Dean and Castiel became closer, and Dean began to see less of the stone faced Castiel from their first encounter and more of the smiling Castiel from after their first trial run, Dean began to wonder if Castiel was more to him than just a partner, or even just a friend.

Sam had constantly pestered him about it in that obnoxious nosy little brother way of his with knowing smiles and not-so-subtle nudges whenever the co-pilots were together. But it wasn’t until one day at lunch, when Dean had cracked some stupid joke that had Castiel smiling down at his mashed potatoes in a way that had Dean’s stomach doing backflips, that Dean realized that maybe Sam was onto something.

Everything began to change after that moment, but not in the way Dean had anticipated. At first it was like Dean was in a dream. He’d find himself staring at Castiel whenever they were together, as if he were caught in a trance, and Castiel would always catch him and flash him that shy smile that Dean couldn’t help but return. He’d find himself standing too close, leaving lingering touches that lasted too long, but instead of shrugging away Castiel would move closer. He’d find his gazes dropping from Castiel’s eyes to his lips when he talked, and though Castiel would continue to talk as if he didn’t notice, Dean swore he could see a hint of a smile forming in the corners of those full lips.

But slowly things began to change, and it felt like Dean was waking up. Castiel began ignoring Dean’s stares and moving away from his touches. Whenever Dean would gaze at those lips they’d be pulled into small frown instead of a smile. He couldn’t understand what was happening, and whenever he’d try to ask he was met with that same hardened look from when he had first met Castiel and a flat response of “I’m fine _,_ Dean.”

The most frustrating part was that Castiel seemed to have found a way to form a wall in his mind around what was going on, so Dean couldn’t even find what had gone wrong between them while in the drift. This hitch in their connection was painfully obvious in their fighting, which worried Dean most of all.

 “Listen, Castiel,” Dean growled, the full name feeling wrong on his tongue but the spark of triumph he felt as Castiel visibly stiffened at the word making it worth it. “I don’t know what the fuck is going on with you, but you better pull your shit together before-“

Dean’s words were cut off with a scream as a sudden pain surged through his body, setting every nerve ending on fire as a strange blue lightning flickered before his eyes. The pain only lasted a moment before subsiding, leaving Dean gasping for breath as he ripped off his helmet, his muscles still spasming from the shock.

“What the hell was that?” Castiel asked breathlessly. He appeared to be even more shaken by the attack than Dean, his blue eyes wide with shock and what Dean deduced to be a hint of fear. It was the most animated Dean had seen him in weeks, and the thought caused a part of Dean to ache from how drastically their relationship had changed.

“It’s a power surge. The Kaijus developed the attack a while back and no one’s found a way to combat it yet. The whole damn city’s probably out of power right now.” Dean glared at the blank screen in front of him as he began fruitlessly flipping switches.

Castiel tilted his head with narrowed eyes. “And what does that mean for us?”

Dean sighed and shook his head. “It means we’re sitting ducks until they send out one of the analog Jaegers to save our sorry asses.”

Castiel scowled at him as if it were somehow Dean’s fault they were in this situation. “I’m going to see if I can find another way to get the power back on,” he said as he disengaged from the Jaeger.

Dean felt his chest suddenly tighten with panic. “Cas, no! You stupid son of a bitch, get your ass back here before you get yourself-“

Suddenly, the Kaiju struck the Jaeger’s head with its tail as it turned to head towards the city. The Jaeger lurched violently from the blow, sending Castiel flying across the room. Dean’s heart stopped as Castiel’s head hit the wall with a sickening crack and he crumpled to the floor.

“ _Cas!_ ” Dean quickly disengaged and sprinted to his co-pilots side. His pounded in his ears as he dropped to his knees and noticed the blood that was trickling down the side of Castiel’s face. He gingerly reached his hand out but it was immediately swatted away.

“Don’t touch me!” Castiel hissed as he feebly tried to scoot away. The panic in Dean’s chest was immediately replaced with anger as he caught the other man’s wrist in a tight grip and yanked him up to his knees. He glared hard until Castiel’s eyes met his.

“No, you know what, Cas?  _Fuck that_. I don’t know what the hell is going on with you lately and right now I couldn’t care less. You’re bleeding and probably have a concussion and I’m not going to let your sorry ass slip into a coma because of your stupid ass pride. So just cut the shit and let me  _help you_  God dammit!”

Castiel blinked slowly as he silently stared at Dean for a while, though it seemed more like he was staring  _through_  Dean with the way his eyes were steadily becoming more unfocused. Dean’s anger quickly morphed into worry when Castiel began to turn pale.

“Cas? You alright, buddy?” Dean asked as he slowly reached up to gently cup Castiel’s face. That seemed to bring the other man back to reality for a moment as his eyes locked onto Dean’s, but then his eyes widened and he quickly turned away to vomit.

Dean’s stomach twisted at the sight, but he ignored it as he rubbed Castiel’s back until he was done. Castiel groaned as he tried to push himself back up with shaky limbs, but he lost his balance and fell back against Dean’s chest.

“Easy, Cas, easy. Don’t worry. I got you.” Dean shifted Castiel until he was situated in his lap as the other man blinked blearily up at him, his eyelids now drooping.

“’M fine, Dean. It’s okay. ‘M just kinda dizzy,” Castiel slurred as he slumped against Dean’s chest and looked up at him, his lips quirked up into a small reassuring smile. Dean’s chest tightened at the sight.

“Listen, Cas. I need you to focus, okay? Can you focus for me?” Dean reached up to wipe the blood off Casitel’s face with a trembling hand. His whole body was trembling. “Focus on my voice. Can you do that?” Castiel hummed as his eyes fluttered close, a smile still on his lips. For some reason that smile only made Dean’s panic worse. “Now promise me you won’t go to sleep.”

“Promise,” Castiel murmured. “Now tell me a story…so I can focus on your voice.”  His eyes glanced back up to Dean’s and Dean could have sworn he saw a touch of mischief there, but it felt wrong, forced, like Castiel was putting that look there for Dean’s sake.

Dean swallowed down the lump that had now formed in his throat. “Okay.” His voice was cracked and rough. He couldn’t do this. He had to do this. Castiel had to stay awake.

He cleared his throat and tried again. “Did I ever tell you how Sammy broke his arm?” he asked, his voice more even. Castiel shook his head. His eyes were more alert now as they stared up at Dean, but Dean could tell it was a struggle for him. There wasn’t the same intensity in those blue pools as there usually was. “Believe it or not, it happened just like this. A Kaiju used the same move and took out the power. Sammy thought he could turn it back on too. I told him it was useless but he just ignored me. You remind me of him sometimes, you know that? You’re both stubborn sons of bitches.” He shook his head and laughed, but it was a hollow bitter sound. The look in Castiel’s eyes made him look away. It was too sympathetic, too fond, too much. Dean decided to stare at the wall instead.

“Anyways, Sammy broke his arm, and I freaked the fuck out. Sammy was calm as ever, of course. He just kept telling me to relax because they passed some new protocol that immediately sent out help if the power went out, but all I could think was what good was that going to do? We were sitting there helpless with a huge ass monster right outside who could squash us like flies in a second. How the hell were we supposed to just sit and wait for them to send someone out? It’s almost kind of funny now that I think about it. Sammy’s the one sitting there with a broken arm calm as can be and I’m the one completely losing my shit and thinking ‘Sammy’s hurt, we’re gonna die, and it’s all my fault’. It actually ended up not taking too long for the paramedics to show up. Maybe that’ll be the case with us.” Dean looked back down with a smile, but it instantly fell once he realized Castiel’s eyes had closed and his breathing was deep and even.

Dean vaguely felt himself start shaking. He couldn’t breathe. There was a lump in his throat and he was choking on it. “Cas?”

He saw more than felt his hand reach up to pat his co-pilots cheek. He prayed for blue, but Castiel’s eyes remained shut.

“Please, Cas…don’t…”

Dean thought he could hear helicopters in the distance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also on [Tumblr](http://archangcl.tumblr.com/post/109143702264/)


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Castiel finally wakes from his coma, and everything seems to just fall into place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for being so supportive on this journey. I dedicate this chapter to Mal, Charlotte, and Diana. I never could have done this without my Dean, Sam, and Bobby ♥ Additional shout out to Cari for being my medical consultant for this chapter lol

_It was all happening in a blur. Four men burst into the room, two already holding a stretcher. Dean screamed at them and fought back as they tried to pry Castiel from his arms, and it took the combined strength of two of the men to pin him against the wall as the other two gently lowered Castiel onto the stretcher._

_Dean struggled for another moment until his eyes settled on Castiel. Any fight he had left in him seeped out onto the floor as his body slumped against the wall, his knees suddenly feeling weak leaving the hands of the two men the only things keeping him upright. Castiel still hadn’t woken up. Why wasn’t he waking up?_

“Dean?”

_Dean didn’t even remember getting into the helicopter. It was like his body was on autopilot, and his mind was back in the Jaeger, back with Castiel. A man sat beside him and began speaking to him, but Dean couldn’t hear a word of what he said. All he could hear was the sickening crack of Castiel’s head hitting the wall over, and over, and over._

_The man snapped his fingers in front of Dean’s face and the pilot blinked in surprise. His eyes flickered up to the man’s face, and he froze. The man asked him once again what happened back in the Jaeger, but Dean couldn’t answer. His mouth was dry, his throat had closed, his whole body was shaking, his head was swimming._

_The man’s eyes were blue, but they were the wrong shade of blue._

_Dean would never see the right shade of blue again._

“Dean.”

_This was all his fault. Castiel was going to die and it was all his fault._

“ _Dean._ ”

Dean woke with a start and nearly fell out of his chair. His heart was pounding against his ribs as his eyes frantically flickered around the hospital room before landing on a set of squinted blue eyes watching him.

His heart stopped completely.

_They were the right shade._

He was out of his chair in a second. “Cas,” he breathed, relief rushing into his bloodstream and seeping into every inch of his body as he rushed over to Castiel’s bedside with a smile stretching across his face. “ _Cas_.” His voice broke and he could feel pinpricks of tears behind his eyes but he couldn’t even find himself to care because  _Castiel was alive he was okay._ Before he could stop himself, Dean reached his hand out to cup Castiel’s cheek, to feel Castiel warm and moving and breathing and _alive_ , but his hand was swatted away.

Dean’s smile fell as Castiel turned his face away from him, slinging the arm that wasn’t connected to an IV across his eyes. “The blinds,” he grumbled, his voice more gravelly than usual from disuse.

Dean blinked at him in confusion. “What?”

“The  _blinds_ , Dean.” Castiel weakly gestured towards the window with a grimace.

Dean’s brow furrowed as he glanced between his co-pilot and the window. It was a nice day out, no clouds in the sky and the sun shining down and- oh. “Right. Concussion. Lights. Bad combo.”

Castiel only offered a grunt in response as Dean turned to close the blinds. Once the room was significantly darker, Castiel hummed in content. His eyes fluttered back open and slowly scanned around the room before settling on Dean. Dean’s breath caught in his throat. It felt like he hadn’t seen that intense gaze in years.

Castiel cleared his throat after a moment, breaking the heavy silence that had settled between them as they stared at one another. “How long was I asleep?”

Dean licked his lips as his eyes broke away from Castiel’s to drop to the floor. “Three days. The doctors weren’t sure if you were gonna wake up at all.”

Castiel hesitated a moment. “And you’ve been here the whole time?” Dean blinked at Castiel in surprise. His tone wasn’t just questioning it was…amazed. Hopeful even.

Dean swallowed before offering a small smile, his heart fluttering against his ribcage like a caged bird. “Of course I have, Cas.”

Castiel simply watched him for a moment, his eyes flickering with a multitude of different emotions before the wall that Dean had been getting used to seeing the past few months went up. “Shouldn’t you be getting a doctor?” he asked, his voice frustratingly even.

_Well, that was nice while it lasted,_  Dean thought as he shook his head with a sigh. “Yeah, I’ll just- yeah,” he mumbled as he avoided Castiel’s gaze and hurried out of the room.

* * *

“Well I have to say, Mr. Novak, you sure know how to take a punch,” Castiel’s doctor, Dr. Mills, said as she scribbled on her clipboard and flashed him a warm smile. “Severe concussion, internal bleeding, and a three day coma under your belt, yet here you are with barely a scratch on ya.” She shook her head with laugh. “It’s very rare for someone to just wake up like that, you know. Usually takes a while. Thank God that wasn’t the case though. If you were out any longer I’d have to end up admitting this one as well.” She nodded towards Dean. “I’m surprised he hasn’t collapsed already from how little he’s been eating and sleeping.”

Dean felt a dark blush staining his cheeks and noticed a faint one staining Castiel’s as well. Blue eyes met his for a split second before flickering back to the doctor. “Thank you, Dr. Mills, for everything,” Castiel said with a shy smile. “Am I allowed to go home now?”

The doctor gave him a disbelieving look. “You haven’t even been in the land of the living for an hour yet and you think I’m gonna let you go just like that? Nuh uh, not on my watch, bucko.” She gave his nose a playful tap with her pen. “We’re gonna monitor you for the next few days to see how things go, and if you’re truly fine then you’ll be sent home to be supervised for a period of time. I’m sure that won’t be a problem.” She glanced at Dean with a knowing smile and a wink, causing him to blush once more.

Castiel’s eyes widened as they jumped between Dean and Dr. Mills. “I assure you that’s completely unnecessary-“

“Are you in any pain?” the doctor asked with a raised eyebrow as if she hadn’t heard him speak. The small smirk on her lips said otherwise.

Castiel sighed with a nod. Dr. Mills hummed as she jotted something down onto her clipboard. “I’m going to prescribe you a few meds that should help.” She flashed him a small smile before turning to Dean. “If anything starts going south you better ring me up asap, capiche?”

“You got it, doc,” Dean said with a smile. The doctor nodded, turning to give Castiel a small squeeze on his shoulder before leaving the room.

Dean groaned as he collapsed into the chair that had been his bed the past three days. “I can’t believe we’re going to be stuck here for the next few days.” His head fell back against the hard back of the chair as he glared at the ceiling. “I was looking forward to getting out of this damn disease infested death trap.”

There was a brief silence. “Who said anything about we?” Castiel asked coolly. Dean furrowed his brow as he glanced over at him. Castiel’s wall was up again. “I’m the one who needs to stay here for the next few days, Dean, not you. You’re free to go. I imagine you stayed to make sure I regained consciousness. I’m awake now, and I’m fine. You are no longer needed here.”

The words felt like a knife twisting in Dean’s gut. He clenched his jaw as he sat up and glared at his co-pilot. “Lemme guess, you have no intention of letting me watch over you when you get released, do you?”

Castiel shrugged halfheartedly as he began picking at a spot on his comforter.

Dean scoffed. “Fine then, if not me, then who else is gonna do it?”

Castiel remained silent, his eyes focused on the spot as he picked at it more urgently.

Red hot anger began coursing through Dean’s veins and he slammed his fist down on the arm of the chair, startling Castiel and making him groan as he clutched his head. Dean felt a pang of guilt, but he shoved it down as he stomped over to Castiel’s bedside and fiercely glared down at him until the man’s eyes met his.

“Alright, you know what, Cas? I am sick and tired of this shit. What the fuck is your problem, man? Did I do something to piss you off? Because you’ve been acting like a snobby little bitch for  _months_  and I’ve  _had it_.”

He threw up his hands as he shook his head. “You don’t want to be my friend anymore? Fine. No one asked you to be all buddy-buddy with me. But when it gets to the point where our lives are put in danger and you almost get yourself  _killed_ , that’s where I draw the fucking line. Now talk, dammit. Tell me what the fuck is going on so we can fix this.”

They stared at each other for a moment before Castiel looked away, his eyes dropping back down to the comforter.

Dean took a deep breath as he closed his eyes. “Come on, Cas. Talk to me.” His voice was softer as he looked at his friend pleadingly. “Tell me how to fix this.”

Castiel’s wall fell a bit as the corner of his mouth twitched, but he remained silent.

Dean scoffed in exasperation as he turned on his heel and headed for the door. “Alright, fine. We’re done here. Don’t bother contacting me when you’re better. We’re not partners anymore.”

He heard a small sharp intake of breath behind him. “Dean.”

He kept walking, refusing to look back as he reached for the door handle.

“ _You’re going to leave me!_ ”

Dean’s hand froze midair.

He turned to find Castiel’s wall crumbled to the ground, leaving nothing but a look of desperation in his wide blue eyes. “Sam’s almost fully recovered, and once he is you’re…you’re going to toss me aside to be his co-pilot again and I just-“ Castiel’s voice faltered as his eyes fell shut and he shook his head with a shuddering breath. “I couldn’t handle it, Dean. I couldn’t handle the thought of you leaving me because I _need you,_  dammit. I’ve never needed anyone like this and it scares me.”

He looked up at Dean with tear filled eyes and Dean vaguely noted that he was back at Castiel’s bedside. He hadn’t even noticed that he had moved. “I was so alone before I met you and I just…the thought of being alone again terrified me because you’re _everything_  to me and I just-“

Before he could fully comprehend what he was doing, Dean’s lips were crashing down on Castiel’s, and before he could fully form the thought of pulling away, Castiel was clinging to the back of his neck and kissing him like he was starving for it. Castiel’s lips were even sweeter and softer than Dean had ever imagined, and Dean moaned softly as his hands cupped the sides of Castiel’s neck to pull him in even closer. His thumbs gently stroked across Castiel’s jawline, earning a pleased little hum that sent a warm spark skittering all the way down Dean’s spine.

After a while their kisses went from quick and desperate to slow and sweet. Eventually, the need for air became too strong and they were forced to part. Dean leaned his forehead against Castiel’s, his eyes still closed as he savored the feeling of Castiel’s warm breathing on his lips.

“I’m never gonna leave you, okay?” he murmured as he pressed a gentle kiss to Castiel’s lips. “Ever.” He pressed another to his cheek. “I promise.” His nose. “ _I promise._ ” His forehead.

Dean could practically  _hear_ Castiel’s smile as he sighed, his fingers sliding up to tangle in Dean’s hair. He gently tugged until Dean pulled back to look at him, and when he did he saw so much love in those blue pools he wanted to drown in them.

“I love you.” Castiel’s voice was hesitant as he said it, as if he were worried Dean didn’t feel the same. Dean thought back to after their first trial run, how Castiel had mentioned not wanting to assume Dean’s sexuality even when his interest in men was obvious. Dean couldn’t help but find Castiel’s innocence absolutely adorable.

“I love you too, Cas.” Castiel’s smile was so bright it was like staring directly into the sun, and Dean couldn’t help but mirror it. Their fingers tangled together on the comforter, the digits sliding together perfectly as Dean’s lips drifted back to Castiel’s.

* * *

“So…you and Cas, huh?”

Dean shifted awkwardly on his bed, his eyes looking everywhere but his brother. “Uh…yeah. Me n’ Cas.”

Sam hummed thoughtfully. Dean held his breath as he chanced a look up at him. Sam’s eyes were scanning over him in a calculating manner, as if Dean were some equation he was trying to solve. Dean could feel beads of sweat beginning to form on his palms.

The silence began eating away at Dean’s nerves. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “Listen, Sammy-“

His words were cut off as Sam laughed loudly, causing Dean to nearly fall off of his bed at the sudden burst of noise. He watched his brother with wide eyes as Sam leaned forward, clutching his stomach with his uninjured arm as his body shook with laughter.  _Oh God, it’s finally happened,_  Dean thought.  _The painkillers have finally gotten to him._

“You’re telling me,” Sam managed to choke out through his laughter “that it took Cas going into a  _coma_  for you two to get together?” He shook his head as he laughed even harder.

Dean crossed his arms with a scowl. “How the fuck is that  _funny_?” he asked indignantly.

“How the fuck is that  _not_  funny?” Sam replied as he wiped a tear from his eyes. “You two have been dancing around each other for  _months_ and it took one of you almost _dying_  to get your heads out of your asses? That’s hilarious, dude.”

Dean rolled his eyes as he uncrossed his arms and leaned back on them. “So, you’re not mad?” he asked with relief.

Sam made some noise between a snort and a scoff. “Why the hell would I be mad?”

Dean shrugged. “I dunno, I just figured you’d be a little pissed that I’m leaving you co-pilot-less right before you’re a functioning member of society again.”

“Eh, I’ll manage,” Sam replied with a shrug.

“Without me? Impossible,” Dean smirked, earning a glare.

“Shut up, asshole.” Sam rolled his eyes before his expression softened. “But really, Dean, don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. I’m happy if you’re happy.” He flashed his brother a genuine smile. “Besides, I already have another co-pilot in mind. Her name’s Jess.”

Dean quirked a brow. “Who the hell is Jess?”

“My nurse. She’s been training to be a Jaeger pilot for a while now and she’ll be official by the time I get this off.” He gestured to his sling. “Her and I get along really well so…I think there’ll be some strong drift compatibility there.”

Dean grinned impishly at Sam’s soft smile. “That’s my boy, gettin’ it on with all the nurses.”

He laughed as a pillow came flying at his face.

* * *

Dean’s gaze shifted over to Castiel as they sat together in same spot they had after their first trial run.

Enough time had passed that now the Jaeger that stood across from them was no longer under construction but complete and ready for battle.

As Dean reached out to lace his fingers with Castiel’s, he couldn’t help but think that the Jaeger wasn’t the only thing that was now complete.

“You know, when I first met you, I thought you were just some pretentious douchebag,” Dean said with a laugh.

Castiel’s lips quirked up into a small smile as he turned his head to Dean. “And now?”

Dean smiled as he gave Castiel’s hand a small squeeze. “Now I see I was completely wrong.”

Castiel hummed as he looked Dean over. “When I first met you I thought you were some self-absorbed ass.”

Dean huffed out a laugh. “And now?”

Castiel smirked. “Now I see I was completely right.”

Castiel laughed as Dean scowled at him. He leaned over to press a sweet kiss to Dean’s lips. “You know I love you,” he murmured, his lips curled up into a smile.

“You can’t just pull the ‘I love you’ card every time you’re a dick,” Dean grumbled, but he already knew Castiel had won as soon as he felt Castiel’s lips kissing down his jaw. He sighed in defeat as his fingers reached up to tangle in Castiel’s hair. “I miss when you were awkward and anti-social.”

Dean jumped and bit back a moan as Castiel bit down harshly. “Don’t lie, you’re glad you brought down my wall,” Castiel murmured, softly kissing where there was sure to be a bite mark later.

Dean couldn’t help but smile.

That was very much true.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also on [Tumblr](http://archangcl.tumblr.com/post/111491699049/)


End file.
